The Local Calendar 9/21/12 Fall Is In The Air, Fruit Pie Contests, Peppers and Food Trucks

The signs of Fall, gourds, the oranges and reds of peppers are beginning to show at the markets as we are just past the peak of the harvest which was earlier this year because of all the crazy heat, frost and heat. It is the 100th anniversary of the Beaver Dam Pepper which is pictured here. Chief Beet Rob Gardner will be eating lots of pie tomorrow as he is a judge at the Morton Grove Farmers Market Fruit Pie contest. Finally, all sorts of fun, happening at The Plant on Saturday, Monster Food Truck Rallys, Tours, movies, food.

If you are a chicken enthusiast, Windy City Coop tours have an itinerary of 20 coops within Chicago to visit. There are plenty of ideas on the Beet for making the most out of your local produce, like Rob’s post on playing the Locavore long game! Now on to the very busy weekend and weeks ahead!!

September 21-23

Chicago – Beaver Dam Pepper Centennial Celebration – Restaurant meals and tastings all over Chicago(go to the link to find out what is going on closest to you) Why give a “hoot” about the Beaver Dam Pepper? It has been included in the Slow Food Ark of Taste, “The Beaver Dam Pepper is a Hungarian heirloom pepper that was brought to Beaver Dam, Wisconsin in 1912 by the Joe Hussli family. The pepper’s first fruits mature 80 days after transplanting, at which point they ripen from lime-green to red. The crunchy fruits are mildly hot and when seeded, they hold an excellent flavor. Rated as 3 on a heat scale of 1-5, the Beaver Dam is great for making fresh batches of cool and tangy salsas.”

Chicago – Chicken Enthusiastists Unite – Windy City Coop Tours City folks WILL flock to see backyard birds on September 22 and 23! Windy City Coop Tour Tour Organizers have been working hard to get coop list and maps together for the 2012 Tour of backyard chicken coops.We have ~20 Chicago area coops on the map — some hosting Visitors on Sat 9/22, some on Sun 9/23, and some on both days.

Chicago – Monster Food Truck Rally& Urban Agriculture Showcase Showdown – 11am – 5pm 1400 West 46th St. Advocates for Urban Agriculture and The Plant This day-long extravaganza will showcase some of Chicago’s most exciting garden and farm projects (a few will even be bringing some produce to sell!) and include live music, screenings of “Food Deserts in a Land of Plenty”, tours of The Plant, and of course tasty treats from some of Chicago’s best food trucks. It’s going to be a ton of fun and is not to be missed! (At $7 admission, it’s also quite a bargain; tours of The Plant alone normally cost $10!)

Chicago – Green City Market -Southern end of Lincoln Park, 7am to 1pm. Chef demonstration will be Joshua Kulp and Christine Cikowski of Sunday Dinner, they will be preparing honey butter fried chicken. 10:30am

Evanston – The Downtown Evanston Farmers Market 7:30am to 1pm at University Place and Oak Ave.(just east of Railroad Ave.) behind the Hilton Garden Inn. Free parking is at the adjacent 1500 Maple garage.

Morton Grove – Morton Grove Farmers Market – 2nd Annual Fruit Pie Contest -6210 Dempster St. 8am-12pm Chief Beet Rob Gardner will be one of the judges. It will be held under the drive-thru between Harrer park and the Morton Grove Civic Center on Dempster. All I can say is this sounds like it will be really good local eats, who does not like fruit pie?

Oak Park – Oak Park Farmers Market – 460 Lake St just one block west of Ridgeland Ave. 7am – 1pm The Market is much more than a farmers’ market. It is an Oak Park tradition, a Saturday gastronomic event (the donuts have a devoted following), a concert site, a social event and a great place to pick up super-fresh produce, traditional and unusual plants, fresh cheeses, honey, flowers, vinegars, herbs, and much more.

Chicago – Re-Thinking Soup Jane Addams Hull House 12pm – 1pm 800 S. Halsted Food co-op movement in Chicago. As the food movement expands, many communities desire clean, fair, and local food but lack options within their own neighborhoods. At this week’s Re-Thinking Soup, hear from two communities that decided to tackle the issue themselves. Representatives from the Dill Pickle Food Co-op and the Sugar Beet Co-op will discuss their solutions for the Logan Square and Oak Park/Austin communities and the challenges and successes of starting food co-ops in Chicago.

Chicago – Chicago Gourmet Festival presented by Bon Appetit. The “Ground Zero” this weekend of all things culinary in Chicago and the country. Pre-sale tickets already sold-out so you had better keep a watch so you don’t miss out on this action packed weekend of chefs, sommeliers, incredible beverages, food and lots more. You can buy regular tickets here . Do you have your tickets yet?

Chicago - The Hamburger Hop – Harris Theater Rooftop Millenium Park – 6-9pm It is a hamburger showdown and the startoff event for the Chicago Gourmet Festival. Top chefs compete to create the city’s best burger. Go to the link for further information and tickets.

Chicago – The Second Annual Independent Spirits Expo – Carmichael’s Warehouse 1052 West Monroe 7-9:30pm Ittt’s baaackk!!! We like independence! For the second year, the Independent Spirits Festival returns to Chicago and will be held at Carmichaels Warehouse. Meet the distillers, brand owners, importers and others who make it possible for you to enjoy a great a variety of small batch, unique and artisinal spirits from around the world, including many Beet favorites, like FEW Spirits. Purchase tickets here.

Springfield – Healthy Farms, Healthy People: Supporting Local Food Systems and Improving Public Health 9am to 4pm The Statehouse Inn 101 East Adamst St. - Healthy Farms Healthy People Illinois is a symposium that will bring together health and agricultural stakeholders from across the state of Illinois to explore the intersection of food policy, agriculture, and health. Keynote speakers and plenary sessions will be followed by working roundtables that discuss and generate possible solutions to the challenges of the Illinois food system. Register here.